Dragon Age: Hero's Return
by McFusterCluck
Summary: A hero, wishing to escape his old life by retreating to a quiet mountain village, is called back into his old life to help the people of Thedas from a rising threat. Please leave reviews!
1. Chapter 1

The fast running waters of the ironically named Climbing Creek lapped down the western slopes of the Frostback Mountains, winding around trees and rocks as it approached the waterfall leading to the Dales. Deer drank from the creek, and fish ran upstream to their spawning grounds. Going up, they came to the Glistening Lake, where there lay a settlement, of about two hundred inhabitants. Over two thirds were human, the rest being elves. The community was a tightly-knit one, with little to no contact with the outside world. Its economy, if you could call it that, was based around hunting and fishing. Only one place held the name of the settlement, that being a sign on a small guardhouse at the entrance of the town, which said _Ayrith: Travelers Welcome_. And for once, the sign was true. When an outsider would come to Ayrith, they were showered with gifts from the residents, mainly food or special clothing. The usual travelers were those from Ferelden, as it lay right over the mountains. All of the families in Ayrith had been there since the end of the Storm Age, aside from one.

There was an outsider, only one, and he lived in the center of town. He was from Ferelden, and was obviously of a higher class. When he came, he brought chests full of treasure, gold, and other items, but nobody in Ayrith took notice, as they cared not for wealth. He had built his house from scratch, and mostly by himself. A few men helped him when he actually did need assistance. Wherever he went, he had a fine blade on his hip, and a shield strapped to his back. He also wore fancy armor, but nothing overwhelmingly extravagant. When a storm came through, which did happen frequently in the summer, he would shelter those whose homes were destroyed, and then rebuild it within the week. Sometimes, at night, he could be seen walking around the village, putting firewood on the doorsteps of homes who ran low. The man thought of everything.

Nearby, there was an entrance to the Deep Roads, but it was sealed and kept watch by ten of the best guards in Ayrith. The dwarves had made contact with Ayrith only to make sure the entrance was properly sealed. Of course, people went in there every now and then, but they were almost always adventurers. Only one person had ever come back out, but that person was the outsider.

The people of Ayrith were perfectly content in their little world, away from the matters of the outside world. For them, their world was Ayrith.

…

The door to the _Whispering Wyvern_ swung open, and the outsider walked inside, wearing pants and a green tunic. He saw his friend, Estelar, sitting at a table in the corner, gulping down a pint of ale. The outsider walked over to Estelar, and sat down. The elf smacked his mug down on the table, and released a mighty belch. The outsider smiled, and raised his right hand. The maiden, Ibota, rushed over, and, standing at the edge of the table, asked, "What'll it be?"

"Just a regular ale, Ibota," said the outsider, grinning.

"You got it, Conner," Ibota said, whisking away.

"How's the ale?" asked Conner.

Estelar laughed and said, "Best one I've had for a while!"

Ibola came back, and set down a full, foaming mug of ale in front of Conner.

"Thank you," said Conner, winking.

She giggled and went off to help another customer.

Conner took a drink and then said, "It's a nice night out."

"It's always like that out here. Better than the cities, anyhow," said Estelar.

"There still is nothing like being surrounded by people, all happy. All enjoying themselves. That was a common occurrence where I'm from," Conner said.

"Where are you from? I never asked you that. I mean, I know you're from Ferelden, just not where," asked the elf.

"Highever. It's a city on the northern coast."

"Ah, Highever! I've been there, only it was many years ago, before the last Blight," Estelar exclaimed.

"Did you like it?" asked Conner, cocking his head to the side.

"I did. The people were extremely kind! The Arl even spoke to me, said he was happy to see a free elf roaming about," Estelar explained.

"Good. He... he was a kind man," Conner said, looking at the ground.

The human took a large gulp of ale, and then slouched back. Behind him, at the bar, a group of men stared at Conner warily. They whispered among themselves in gruff voices.

Conner finished off his ale and yelled, "Ah, damn! Stay here, my friend. I'm going to go get more ale." He got up, and walked over and behind the bar. He placed his mug under the keg, and started to refill his mug. All the while the group of men stared at him. Conner noticed, and looked up at them.

"Having a good night, lads?" he asked.

The men glared at him.

Conner nodded quickly, and said, "Alright!"

He finished refilling his mug, and started walking back to the table when the men formed a wall in front of him.

"Excuse me!" laughed Conner, though he knew what was going on.

One of the men grumbled. They wore clothing of the color blue. These men were the Haskin brothers. Ruffians, they were. The Haskin brothers were some of the biggest troublemakers in Ayrith, and believed that the village practically belonged to them. Nobody in town enjoyed their presence, but unfortunately, the townspeople had to endure it. Being the people they were, the Haskin brothers didn't like having an outsider living in Ayrith as though he was from there.

"I said, excuse me!" yelled Conner, a hint of anger in his tone.

The Haskin brothers, all five of them, towered over the lone man, who looked fearless.

Estelar, seeing what was about to happen, got up, and started walking over to the brothers.

"It would be best if you all take it down a notch," suggested the elf, looking at the oldest of the brothers, Devan.

"Shut up, knife-ears," snapped Antoine, the youngest. Estelar raised an eyebrow, and stepped in front of the human.

"Pardon me?" Estelar said.

Antoine grabbed the elf, and smashed his face into a bar stool, shouting, "I said, shut up!"

Estelar was obviously out cold.

Conner looked at his unconscious friend, and shook his head. "Bad idea," he said.

"Oh yeah?! What're you going to do?" bellowed Devan.

Almost instantly, Conner's fist shattered Devan's front teeth, and broke his nose. The oldest brother dropped on the ground, out of the fight. Antoine and the second youngest, Jett, rushed forward, and grabbed Conner on either arm. The outsider, his strength far better than the two brothers, swung his arms towards each other, making the two brothers faces collide, busting lips and breaking teeth. Grady, the middle child, pounced at Conner, swinging his fists wildly. Conner caught a hit to the arm, but nothing more. Grady saved up his strength, and threw one hard swing at the Fereldan. As the fist closed in, Conner reached out, grabbing Grady's fist. Conner then started closing his own hand around the Haskin's fist, the cracking of bones beginning to sound. Grady began to scream, and flop around like a fish as the outsider crushed his hand. Blood came out from between Conner's fingers, and he finally let go when Grady passed out from fear. Elmer, who was arguably the toughest of the brothers, stepped forward, getting in Conner's face. Growling, Elmer shoved Conner against the bar. Conner threw a punch, catching Elmer's abdomen. Elmer was unfazed. The man leaned in, grabbing Conner by the neck. Then, glass shattered over the back of Elmer's head, and then, Elmer fell, bleeding from his scalp. From behind him stood Estelar, holding a broken bottle.

The entire tavern erupted in cheers. Conner threw down his mug on the knocked out Devan, saying, "Told you."

Estelar went back to the table, while Conner again got a pint of ale. He stepped over the knocked out brothers, who were soon dragged out by guards. Back at the table, Estelar panted heavily.

"Good tussle," the elf chuckled.

"That was nothing compared to the dwarven bar fights," replied Conner, wiping away a patch of Haskin blood with a napkin.

"Oh, I'm sure," Estelar said, drinking more ale.

Ibola came back, and said, "Thanks for that. Those Haskin boys have needed that."

"Always happy to help," Conner said, giving a courteous nod.

Ibola walked to the middle of the _Whispering Wyvern_ and shouted, "Free round on the house!"

Everyone in the tavern erupted with cheering.

…

Three hours later, as the moon rose high, the tavern was still full, but Conner and Estelar were leaving. As they went for their homes, they exchanged goodbyes and headed home. Ayrith was silent, aside from the _Whispering Wyvern_. In Ferelden, this would be considered strange, especially in a city, but here, it was the norm. Two years Conner had lived here, and he had loved every bit of it. He did plan on going back to Ferelden, but it wouldn't be soon.

Conner unlocked his door, and went inside. He plopped down in his chair in front of his fireplace, and let out a deep breath from his nose. He picked up the book he was reading, Tales of the Destruction of Thedas, and opened to the chapter he was on, titled _The Second Sin_, which was part of the section about the First Blight. The roaring fire kept the room alight, and Conner was content with it. He was used to being in front of fires outdoors, but this would do.

His eyes gliding over the words imprinted on the pages, Conner couldn't help but remember the Fifth Blight, which claimed the lives of thousands. But luckily, it was halted before it could spread to the rest of Thedas.

The dwarves, which were pretty much the Tevinter Imperium of the underground, were almost exterminated by the darkspawn during the First Blight. It also brought down the strength of the Tevinter Imperium, which was pretty much the cause of the Blight, and that opened the doors for the birth of many nations. The Imperium was a mighty empire, but when the darkspawn came to the surface, their armies couldn't be everywhere at once. The First Blight was the longest, lasting nearly two hundred years. Only with the founding of the Grey Wardens came the end to the First Blight with the slaying of Dumat, the Archdemon.

As Conner flipped the page, three heavy knocks came at the door.

"Who would come over at this hour?" Conner asked himself. He picked up his sword, and walked over to the door. He gripped the handle, and pulled open the door, revealing a cloaked, hooded, figure, much shorter than Conner.

" Oghren?!"


	2. Chapter 2

Conner ushered in the dwarf, who hung his cloak on a nearby coat rack. Conner stepped back, and with a laugh, immediately hugged his old friend. As the human came back from the hug, Oghren glared at him. Then, he too started laughing. Oghren took off his backpack, but kept his large battleaxe on his back. He walked past Conner and to the pantry, while Conner looked on. The dwarf came back with a barrel of beer, and strode over to the dining room table. Conner stumbled around like a lost child while his friend walked about, grabbing mugs out of the cupboards. Finally, Oghren plopped down in a chair, setting his axe against the edge of the table. Conner sat down across from him.

"You didn't think I'd find you, eh?" asked the dwarf, filling a cup with beer.

"No. I didn't, actually. But I've no problem with you being here," replied Conner, taking a cup of beer.

Oghren downed his glass in one swig, and said, "It wasn't hard, actually. I'd just ask people if they saw a big fella walking around like he owned the place."

"Very funny," said Conner.

"In all seriousness," Oghren belched, "I just asked if they saw a dark haired fella wearing fancy armor and carrying fancy weapons."

Ignoring what the dwarf said, Conner asked, "What brings you here to Ayrith?"

Gulping another glass of beer, Oghren said, "That's for me to know, and you to find out. How's life in the mountains?"

Conner shrugged, and said, "It's good."

"How can you shrug and then say it's good?" asked the dwarf.

"Don't question your commander," Conner laughed.

Oghren burst out into wild laughter. He started pounding the table, cracking the wood in places.

When he was done, Oghren burped, and said, "It wasn't that funny."

Conner chuckled and said, "It's wonderful to see you. How is Orzammar?"

"King Bhelen's definitely a strong ruler. We've taken a lot of the Deep Roads back. He's still kinda pissed off about the whole destruction of the Anvil of the Void, though," Oghren explained.

"It was the right thing to do. You know that," replied Conner.

"Yeah, sure. More trade's coming through Orzammar, which is good, I guess," said Oghren, shrugging at the end.

Conner smirked and mimicked the dwarf from earlier, saying, "How can you shrug and then say it is good?"

Oghren stuck up his middle finger.

Conner laughed, and then asked, "Do you want another barrel? I have plenty."

Oghren shook the barrel of beer on the table, and then shook his head.

"No brew for two days. Had plenty when I started my way here," Oghren sighed.

"Oh? What happened to it?" asked Conner, even though he knew the answer.

"Eh, drank it all. I'm a dwarf, Cousland, you know that."

"That I do, my friend. That I do," replied Conner, raising his cup to his lips.

Oghren wiped some beer off of his beard, and then burped yet again.

"Say, remember that drinking contest we had in… oh, where was it?" began Oghren.

"Denerim?"

"Yeah! Boy, I sure whooped that elf prick, didn't I?" laughed Oghren.

"No, no, Oghren. I remember you passing out after drinking a barrel and a half of ale and then yelling at Queen Anora about how much of a whore she was," explained Conner, slouching back.

Oghren scratched his head, and sat in silence.

"Oh. Well, that works too," he finally said.

Conner got up, and said, "I think you need rest. Come, my friend, and I shall show you to your room."

He left the dining room, Oghren following closely. Oghren quickly jumped into the bed, and was snoring in half a minute. Conner chuckled, and then retired to his own room.


	3. Chapter 3

As the sun started to rise over the peaks of the Frostback Mountains, the birds started to chirp, and the wind rustled the trees in the forest. The people of Ayrith began to wake up and prepare breakfast, while many of the men disappeared into the trees, trying to find that days supper. Conner had been out hours before, as he did not get much sleep. The sudden coming of Oghren was part of the reason, but there was a feeling in the back of Conner's mind that something was coming.

The human crept through the bushes, tracking a buck he saw no less than half an hour ago. He remained hot on the deer's trail, never ceasing. Conner heard the wild calls of the buck; it was close. He came on a patch of tall grass, and Conner crawled up behind it. He peeled it back, revealing a small clearing where the buck stood alone, eating from a bush of blackberries.

Drawing his bow, Conner kept his eye on the buck, watching every move of it. He dragged himself to one knee, and knocked back an arrow.

Just before Conner would let the arrow loose, the buck snapped its gaze up and to the bush to its right. Suddenly, Oghren burst out of the thicket, dropping his axe straight into the buck's neck. The deer screamed, and then thumped to the ground, dead. Conner, annoyed, crawled out of the bush and slung his bow over his shoulder.

"What was that for?! I'd been tracking that thing for half an hour!" yelled Conner.

Oghren started laughing and said, "Come on. It was a race."

"Well, you've ruined it. I can't hang its head over the mantle, and this was a damn fine buck."

"Sorry, not sorry," replied Oghren.

Conner said nothing, and then walked away. Oghren shrugged, and then followed the human back towards the village.

…

"It must get pretty boring up here, I'd say," Oghren said as the two sat down at a table in the _Whispering Wyvern_.

"Yeah, it can. It's not that bad though," said Conner, drinking some ale.

"Come on, Cousland. You know it is. Remember how it was, going through the Deep Roads, and meeting Caridin? Remember killing the Archdemon? You can't just go from that to this…crap," Oghren said, finishing his first mug of ale.

"I like it here. It's peaceful," Conner said.

"Just like last night?" Estelar said, coming up to the table, mead in hand. He sat down next to Conner.

"Who're you?" he asked Oghren.

"Give me your name Elf, and I shall give you mine," Oghren said.

"Name's Estelar. I'm a friend of Conner."

"Ah. I'm Oghren, a very old buddy of Mr. Cousland here," the dwarf said.

Estelar looked at Conner and said, "You…you're a Cousland? So… so you are a noble of Highever?"

Conner nodded.

"But wasn't it a Cousland that slew the…you… you are the Warden!" Estelar shouted, in complete shock. The entire tavern quieted down to less than a whisper, everyone's eyes on Conner.

"Oh, great," mumbled Oghren.

Conner looked at the ground.

"Probably should have kept your mouth shut," Oghren added.

"It's fine, Estelar. Don't mind him," Conner said.

Estelar noticed that the entire tavern was silent, and then he yelled, "Do not eavesdrop! Please, go back to what you're doing!"

The taverns volume rose again.

Oghren slouched back and said, "Well, since the word's out now, there's no point in keeping a secret anymore. King Alistair wants to see you in Denerim. Something important."

Conner jumped up and yelled, "Bah! What would he need of me?! He is a Warden! You are a Warden! Why am I needed?!"

Oghren shrugged.

"There is too much here for me to leave!"

"I shall go with you, if you wish," Estelar said.

"You? What do you know of fighting?" snapped Conner.

"More than you think," Estelar said.

"Come on, Conner. Just this one time. Then you can come back," Oghren said.

Conner grumbled.

…

Conner pulled the key out of the lock, the last time for a while. He looked at his house, and gave a faint smile. He sighed, and then turned around. Oghren and Estelar were sitting on a horse, while Conner's stood vacant. Packs were slung on the back, enough food for the trip to Denerim. Conner jumped onto his horse, and nodded at Estelar, who made his horse begin trotting towards the road. Conner didn't look back.


End file.
